Philippine carrier flies stranded Filipinos back home

Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) has given the green light to mount four special international flights to transport Filipinos stranded overseas.

In a statement over the weekend, PAL said it lined up a series of flights from Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) over the next two weeks, after it completed six flights since July 29, under special arrangements with the Philippine government.

In addition, PAL also operates repatriation flights from various countries in the Middle East and Asia, special flights from London, Australia, and New Zealand, and regularly scheduled services from Japan, Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Taipei, Indonesia, Guam, the U.S., and Canada.

Only Philippine passport holders with a valid negative COVID-19 RT-PCR test taken within 48 hours before departure will be allowed to board. They will also be required to undergo a second RT-PCR test after the first seven days of quarantine in the Philippines.

Passengers must present the One Health Pass QR code prior to aircraft boarding. All travelers should register with the Bureau of Quarantine e-Health Declaration Card including children.

In line with the Philippine government’s current health protocols for Bayanihan flights, all passengers will be subjected to a 14-day stringent facility-based quarantine upon arrival in the Philippines.

The cost of the quarantine hotel stay of overseas Filipino workers and the RT-PCR tests on the 7th day will be shouldered by the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) or the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) while returning overseas Filipinos will cover their own hotel and RT-PCR test costs.

Image by april kim from Pixabay